Police search for men who left suspect van at Gatwick

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A controlled explosion was carried out at London's Gatwick Airport on a suspicious vehicle on Wednesday.

Story highlights

Two men sneaked van into parking lot and disappeared

Vehicle no longer owned by company whose name is painted on side

Bomb squad blows its way into van, nothing serious found

All flights departing and arriving as they should, official says

Two men who left a suspicious van in a short-term parking lot Wednesday at London's Gatwick Airport are wanted for questioning, authorities said in a written statement.

The men pushed up a barrier to get into a parking deck then parked the blue Renault van on the bottom floor, the statement from Sussex police said.

When authorities checked with the company whose name was on the van, it said it got rid of the vehicle in November. More checks revealed the van was unregistered.

The bomb squad was called because it appeared something large and heavy was in the back of the van, and police used explosive charges to get into the vehicle.

Nothing threatening was found in the vehicle, police said.

"There is nothing to link the vehicle with terrorist activity and there is a strong possibility that the two men dumped the van as they headed for a flight," Inspector Gary Medland from Gatwick Police said. "We are obviously very keen to talk to the men involved."

Police shut down the parking area for more than three hours, causing a major disruption for some passengers.

A spokeswoman for the airport said all flights operated normally during the police activity.